High winds cause power outages in Boone County

The storm that carried winds between 60 to 75 mph from the northwest passes over Capen Park on Sunday, Aug. 8, 2011. The strong winds caused power outages in almost 800 homes in Boone County.¦Sarah Hoffman

COLUMBIA — Strong winds caused power outages that affected almost 800 homes and businesses in Boone County late Sunday afternoon.

Of eight reported power outages, five were related to what Ryan Euliss of Boone Electric Cooperative called "tree limb interference with power lines."

"Generally when you have a windstorm like that, it isn't going to cause substantial damage," Euliss said. "The damage that will occur will likely always be from fallen trees that take out power lines."

The winds were part of a severe thunderstorm that started in northwest Missouri, traveled into the central part of the state, then southward and into southeast Missouri, said Butch Dye of the National Weather Service.

The Associated Press reported that thousands of people in the Kansas City area were without power early Monday after the storm carrying winds between 60 to 75 mph and heavy rain hit the area Sunday.

The strongest winds were reported in Boone County about 5 p.m. Sunday. They were:

62 mph at the Columbia Regional Airport weather station.

Estimated at 45 mph on Interstate 70 a mile east of Columbia, according to the National Weather Service.

Estimated at 45 to 50 mph generally in Columbia, according to the Columbia Police Department.

40.4 mph at MU's Sanborn Field, at College Avenue and Rollins Street in the East Campus neighborhood.

No power outages were reported in Columbia, according to the Columbia Fire Department, Columbia Water and Light and the National Weather Service. But tree limbs were down across the city.

Of the 798 homes and businesses affected by the power outages in Boone County, most were near McBaine or Sturgeon. Two outages affected 225 power users in McBaine, Euliss said, and one outage affected 530 users in Sturgeon.